


A Man Sat Fishing at the Edge of the World

by StoryHollow



Category: Original Work
Genre: Ambiguous/Open Ending, Freeform, Original Fiction
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-01
Updated: 2021-01-01
Packaged: 2021-03-10 20:21:24
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 518
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28483077
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/StoryHollow/pseuds/StoryHollow
Summary: Just a little short story I’ve had on the shelf for a while. This is my first post, let me know what you think!
Kudos: 1





	A Man Sat Fishing at the Edge of the World

I went out to the edge like Mama was always telling me not to, and there was a man there. His coat was more patches than cloth, and all ten of his toes stuck out from his shoes. He had a fishing pole hung over the side, and his curly hair was as white as the clouds below.

“What are you doing here?” I asked.

“Same as you, I imagine,” he said back with a smile.

I slung my own pole off my back. He watched me as I threw out my line and sat down in the cool blue grass.

“What do you hope to catch?” he asked.

“Papa said that there’s this one kind of fish that tastes better than anything you’ve ever eaten, like something out of a dream.”

“And you want to catch one?”

“Yeah. ‘Cause Johnny said he was wrong, said they don’t exist.”

“I see,” the man smiled. “You have to prove your Papa was right, is that it?”

“Yeah.”

We sat together in comfortable silence and the hours ticked by. I kicked my feet in the white mist and it swirled up over the side of the cliff.

“Hey mister, I think you got something.” The man’s line had gone taut. He was just sitting there though, staring out into the yellow, lowering sky.

“Hmm? Oh, thank you.” He pulled in his line and at the end was the prettiest little creature I’d ever seen. It had long fins for gliding, like all the fish from beyond the edge, but this one was big and smooth and sparkled brighter than the stars on a clear night. He laid it out on the grass beside him.

“Hey, is that the kind my Papa told me about?”

“You came all the way out here, and you don’t know what it is you’re looking for?”

I frowned at him and he laughed. “Yes, it’s the one you’re after. They’re quite common, actually. Can’t tell you how many I’ve caught over the years.”

“Then how ‘bout sharing that one with me?"

“Oh now, I couldn’t do that.”

“Why not?”

He smiled at me. “Because it won’t mean a thing if you don’t do it yourself.”

“I have to go.” I started reeling in my line.

“Really? You don’t seem like the type to give up so easily.”

“I’m not! But it’s getting dark, so I have to get home.” I picked up my empty basket and stood to leave.

“Do you want to come fish with me again?”

I stopped. “I wouldn’t mind if you did,” he said. “It gets pretty lonely out here, after all.”

“I can’t. Mama says I shouldn’t come out here. She says it’s dangerous.” 

“Well, she might have a point. People only come out here when they’re chasing something. And once you start chasing something, it’s hard to know when you should stop. Go too far, and you can’t find your way back.”

I looked back at him. He was all hunched over, and the setting sun was painting him red.

“What are you chasing?”

He smiled. “Ask me tomorrow.”

**Author's Note:**

> Just a little short story I’ve had on the shelf for a while. This is my first post, let me know what you think!


End file.
